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Budget shortfall affects VA in Northwest Arkansas Saturday, Jul 16, 2005 By Kate Barrett Stephens Washington Bureau WASHINGTON -- Nearly 50 veterans in Northwest Arkansas have been put on a waiting list instead of receiving appointments at the VA hospital in Fayetteville because of a budget shortfall, according to the medical center's associate director. Veterans put on hold include men and women who fought in previous wars and were not hurt in combat, Doris Cassidy said. She said most are people with moderate to high incomes who previously relied on private care but are turning to public care in the wake of rising costs. Those veterans have been assigned lower priorities by the Department of Veterans Affairs in instances where resources are stretched. The VA has acknowledged it faces a $1 billion nationwide budget shortfall this fiscal year. "If you have enough money to put more doctors on and have more clinics, then that would resolve the problem," Cassidy said. The priority system was invoked on June 6 in Fayetteville, she said. Cassidy guessed it will be 12 to 18 months before the hospital receives more money and can accommodate new enrollees in lower priority categories. The Fayetteville hospital is one of a number of VA facilities feeling the effects of underfunding. A May letter sent to patients in Alexandria, La., announced suspended services for the same group of vets. The money crunch is angering Arkansas veterans, including disabled Vietnam vet James Bailey. With the VA system under strain from operations overseas, he said he is upset the government is spending millions of dollars elsewhere. "The country said it would take care of its vets," said Bailey, chairman of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 30-31 in Rogers. "The state of Arkansas said it would take care of its vets. And it's time that they are taken care of. The politicians need to understand that." The wait list does not include men and women returning home from Afghanistan and Iraq, Cassidy stressed. "We're treating all the people coming back," she said. Rep. John Boozman, R-Rogers, said he learned of the situation a few weeks ago, and has met with Jonathan Perlin, VA undersecretary for health. "We're going to give them whatever it takes," he said of replenishing VA coffers. Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark., said VA funding has been mismanaged by the Bush administration. "Unfortunately, our veterans in Fayetteville and around the country are paying the price of this Administration's insufficient planning for the veterans' health care system," Pryor said. VA facilities in Little Rock have not turned away applicants due to the budget problems, according to Laurie Driver, public affairs officer for the Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System. Still, Driver said, "We're looking at our budget every way we can, every day, to ensure that we spend the money as wisely as possible." The sleep clinic at the John L. McClellan Memorial Veterans Hospital in Little Rock maintains a wait list of more than 200 people, but Driver said that list resulted from scheduling issues before the VA's recent financial shortcomings were revealed. According to Terry Jemison, a Veteran Affairs spokesman in Washington, the shortfall was the result of several miscalculations that came to head at once. "Nationally, we had realized about halfway through this fiscal year that we were seeing a greater level of demand than we expected," he said. While the VA estimated its hospitals would see about 5.3 million veterans this year, month-to-month patient counts upped that estimate by 145,000, he said. In the south central region that includes Arkansas, 44,676 new veterans have entered the health care system in fiscal 2005, according to the area network's public affairs officer Mario Rossilli. The demand came from an influx of men and women returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan, coupled with a growing number of aging veterans in need of care. Rossilli added rising drug prices have also factored into that equation. In Washington, the House and Senate are passing bills to allocate emergency funding for the remainder of this year while at the same time trying to determine how to best prepare for next year. The issue has not been finally resolved. The House has passed a stand-alone bill providing an extra $975 million. The Senate has tacked on various measures to appropriations bills in amounts exceeding $1 billion. "I am optimistic we will be able to shake out adequate funding in the coming weeks to ensure our veterans hospitals receive the funding they desperately need to meet increasing demand," Pryor said. |
